Thomas quinlan



No. 6I7-,54|. Patented Jan. l0,-|899.' T. flUlNLAN. INK HOLDER FOR PENS,

(Apiflication filed May'lf, 1897.)

(No Model.)

IN VENT 0!? A TTORNE is.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS QUINLA'N, OF CARDIFF, ENGLAND.

INK-HOLDER FOR PENS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 617,541, dated January 10, 1899.

Application filed May 1, 1897. Serial No. 634,719. (No model.)

To all whom it 712/574] concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS QUINLAN, a subject of the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at No.

Cowbridge road, Cardiff, in the county of Glamorgan, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ink-Holders for Pens, (for which I have obtained Letters Patent in Great Britain and Ireland, No. 5,039, dated February 24, 1897 ;in France, No. 267,596, dated June 6, 1897; in Belgium, No. 128,764, dated June 8, 1898, and in Austria, No. 47/3,235, dated September 4, 1897,) of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in ink-holders for pens; and the object of the invention is to provide means for supporting in the ink-holder a large supply of ink in such a manner that the same is always securely suspended and in no danger of dropping from the pen and its even flow secured whether a large or small quantity be held in the holder; and the invention consists of an ink-holder for pens comprising a tongue adapted to fit beneath the pen and provided with a lower perforation for retarding the fiow of ink near the point of the pen and with a larger upper perforation for supporting the ink above said lower perforation, whereby an even tension is induced throughout the body of suspended ink, as' will -be fully described hereinafter and finally pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a pen, penholder, and inkholder having a tongue of soft material and embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a similar View, partly in section. Fig. 3 shows two views, respectively a side elevation and a plan view, of a detached ink-holder made according to my invention. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the same; and Fig. 5 is a side elevation of a pen, penholder, and ink-holder having a tongue of hard material applied to the pen and embodying my invention.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings, a is the tongue. Z) is the band. 0 c are the holes which are d is the pen, and e is formed in the tongue. the penholder.

My improved ink-holder is composed of a small thin piece of any suitable material,

either a'soft resilient material, such as indiarubber, or a hard material, such as sheet metal, fashioned in the form of a tongue tapering fromend to end substantially as illustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings. The said tongue has perforations o 0 formed in it to act as vents and cause theink to flow smoothly from the pen when in use. The root or widest end of the said tongue is provided with an annular band 5, which stands out at right angles to the tongue and which passes over and around the pen and serves to hold the ink-holder thereon. When so fixed in position, the tongue at lies up under the pen, the tip of the tongue being brought down as near to the points of the nibs as possible.

When a tongue of india-rubber or other soft elastic material is used, on dipping the pen into the ink the tongue will slightly recede outward, except at the extreme tip, which keeps contact with the nibs away from the pen by reason of the weight of the ink drawn up and lodged between the tongue and pen. When writing is commenced, the ink will be drawn into the nibs and thence onto the paper by capillary attraction in the usual manner; but a further supply is prevented when the pen is removed from the paper by virtue of the tip of the tongue closing on the nibs and forming a kind of valve, and thus shutting the ink back. On recommencing to write the ink again flows, as required, and continues to flow as long as the pen is jarred and the nibs opened by contact with the surface of the paper until the supply behind the inkholder is exhausted. As the supply of ink contained by the ink-holder diminishes the tongue gradually assumes its original position, as in Fig. 2. y

In practice it is found that the presence of the holes has an influence on the flow of ink, tending to draw the ink back away from the nibs, and this tendency is beneficial inasmuch as by impeding the flow of ink possible blots and blind strokes are avoided. As illustrated in Fig. 3, for this purpose the upper perforar tion 0 of the tongue is made larger than the lower perforation 0, so as to afford by capillary attraction a support to the larger volume of ink at the upper part of the tongue and relieve the pressure of the said ink upon the ink at the lower part of the tongue near the By this means an even tension is the flow of ink near the point of the pen and with a larger upper perforation for supporting the ink above said lower perforation, whereby an even tension is induced throughout the body of suspended ink, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature, in presence of two witnesses, this 13th day of April, 1897.

THOMAS QUINLAN.

\Vitnesses:

SAMUEL WESLEY ALLEN, STANLEY HowELLs. 

